Warp beam lifting mechanism



Nov. 20, 1951' E. A. KIESSLING ETAL WARP BEAM 'LIFTING MECHANISM Original Filed Sept. 23, 194.8

ATTORNEY Patented Nov. 20, 1951 UNITED STATES "ICE WARP BEAM'IJIF TINGME QHAN SM 1 Edward ,A. Kiessling, River Edge, N. :J., Francis. Gerard ,-Lake,..N;ew York, :N. ;Y., :and :Frederik Stephenson, Lyndhurst, 5N. ;J .,.-ass,i,gno1:s, 1b) ,mesne assignments, to Steel and Alloy Llank Company, Newark, N. J., a corporationotNew Jersey Original application September :23, 11-943, (Serial The presentinventicn relates tojimprovements in warp" beam mounts and to the means for moving the warp beam towards and away from axial alignment with its bearings. This appli- Cation is a division of application 'Serial No.

150,334;'filedfSeptember .23, 1948.

The conventional'loom ihas near its rear end .a warp beam on which the warp threads are ing with a let-ofi pinion and mounted rigid with 5 one of the gudgeons of the .Warp'beam so as to .form' a unit with the ,warp' beam, during the process of removing "an empty warp beam from the loom and replacing it by a'full warp beam.

The warp'beam, whether it is empt or full, .isbuiky and'heavy and is, therefore, hard to manipulate in and out of operative supported position on the loom. The unitary attachment of the large heavy beam head gear to the -warp beam'renders theunit more difi'icult to -manipulate inr-and out of operative position and also introduces the complication of requiring said beam head-gear: to i be moved in and" out of mesh with the let-off pinion in the process of moving the'warp beam in or-out-of mounted position.

The principal object of the present invention .isto' provide new "and improved means by which thewarp'beam-may'be moved into 'orout of operative mounted position.

Various other objects of theinvention will be apparent from the *following particular descriptionian'dfrom inspectionof the accompanying drawings in which:

.Fig. 1 is a fragmentary perspective of'thewarp beam'mount and lifting mechanism embodying the-present invention;

'FigJZis a'transverse rear section ofthe loom taken approximately along the lines 2-4 of Fig.1 and shows the warp beam empty but in mounted operative position before it has been removed from the loom and the lifting mechanism prepared-to remove the empty warp'beam;

"3 is a detail section of the warp {beam lifting-mechanism taken approximately along the ,2 lines ,I3 3.ofiF 'ig.,2 and showstsaidiliftingwmechanism in raised positionto lower the empty warp beam .from the loom; and

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 3 .butshows the warplbeam in.running mounted positionan'd the lifting vmechanism in'lowered inoperativeposition. Referring to thedrawings; the loom, is provided within .right'loomside ID and aleft loomside U serving as the main frame structure of the loom. Each of these loomsides is shown comprisin an inner web l21and anouter web l3 interconnected by,a iioorjplate 1'4 and cross-braces [5, so that the webson eachlcomside 'form a strong rigid unit-and maybe of the general type shown and described in copending application Serial No. 691237, filed August 17,, 1946, now Patent No. 2,533128. "Extending between the 'loomsides lo and 'H isa warp beam ['6 supported by'bearing mounts each secured between the webs of 'a corresponding'loomside. The .warp sheet unwin ds from the warp beam it, passes over a whip roll ;(not,shown) and then extends .forwardly to various weavinginstrumentalities (not shown). The rate of advance of this warp sheet is controlled by a'let-ofi motion such as that indicated generally art-2.6 and shown mounted onthe left loomside! I. The let-ofi motion is employed to control warp 'feed, so as to allow the necessary amount of yarn'to'be unwound from the warp beam and; to maintain said yarn under proper tension during the weaving cycle. As far as certain aspects ofthe'inve'ntion'are concerned the let-offmotion may be ofany suitable type lmown in the art. {Ihelet-ofi motion shown hasa'n'input shaftlnot shown) drivenfrom the warp beam I6 through a. beam head gear.25 which is secured .to the bea'mjshaft as willbe described andwhich meshes with alet-ofi pinion (not shown) "keyed .to' said input shaft.

The warp beamjlB comprises a cylindrical beam barrelzfi and a pair of beam'heads or flangesjZ'l integral or otherwise rigidly. secured to said beam barrel. The warp beam [6 is supported in'positionJior'let-ofi rotationby bearing mounts which are similar in construction except that'theone mount'is adapted to support the beamhead gear 25'. The manner in which the wgeari2'5 is connecte'dto said one bearing moun and the contruction ofpthelbearings and .otherfietailsof .the bearing mounts'is'fully disclosed in said'parent application Serial No. 50,834 and not being the basis of the claims of this application will not be gone into here.

For supporting the warp beam IS in operative position on the loom and for effecting a drive connection between said warp beam and the beam head gear 25, there is provided a gudgeon B. The gudgeon 58 is axially movable, so that it can be withdrawn from engagement with the warp beam 16 when it is desired to remove the warp beam Hi from its bearing mounts. For that purpose, the gudgeon 50 has an axial extension accessibly projecting outwardly from the outer loomside web l3 for manipulation. For facilitating the handling of the gudgeon 58 in its axial movement in or out of beam supporting position, the outer projecting end 54 has secured thereto a handle 55 shown in the form of a pin extending diametrically through said projecting end.

For locking the gudgeon 58 in operative beam supporting position shown in Fig. 1, said gudgeon is provided with a circumferential slot and there is provided a locking device comprising a detent lever 51 pivotally mounted intermediate its ends at 58 and having at one end a catch 68 in the form of a hook straddling the projecting end of the gudgeon 58 and latching into the peripheral slot therein to prevent axial movement of said gudgeon in limiting position of said gudgeon. The detent lever 51 has an arm on one side of the pivot support 58 formed with a flange extension 62 serving as a handle. A coil spring around the pivot pin of the pivot support 58 serves to bias the detent 51 clockwise into position to lock the gud'geon against axial movement.

For lowering an empty warp beam [8 after the gudgeons 58 have been withdrawn from supporting position with respect to said warp beam and for lifting a full warp beam into axially aligned position with respect to its bearing mounts, there is provided a mechanism comprising a pair of brackets 18 and H secured to the inner faces of the inner webs [2 of the two loomsides l8 and II respectively, as for example, by means of the bolts 12. Each of the brackets 10 and H has a pair of aligned bearings 13 and 1'4 for a shaft 15 carrying at its rear square end a handle 16 for rotating said shaft. Each of said brackets 10 and H is formed at its forward end with a pair of flanges '80 and BI flanking a track 82 for a corresponding beam head 2'! and pivotally support said track at 83. The forward end of the shaft 15 has keyed or otherwise secured thereto an eccentric cam 84 engaging the lower side of the track 82 and adapted to raise said track or permit said track to be lowered about its pivot support at 83 according to the manipulation of the turning handle 16.

A girt 88, shown in the form of a cylindrical tube, has its ends fitted over bosses 81 secured to or projecting from a flange 88 of the brackets 18 or H to reinforce the loom frame structure.

While the loom is operating, the handle 16 will be in the inoperative horizontal position shown in Fig. 6 and a low part of the eccentric cam 84 will be disposed on top. In this position, the track 82 will be lowered below the beam heads 21, so that they will have no supporting engagement therewith and the warp beam IE will be free to operate without restrictions from the lifting mechanism. After the warp beam Mi has become empty and is ready to be replaced by a full one, the handles 18 are turned into position to rotate the eccentric cams 84 and to raise thereby the corresponding tracks 82 angularly upwardly into engagement with the peripheries of the beam heads 21. In this track supporting position of the eccentric cams 84, the parts will be self-locked when the full weight of the empty warp beam l8 falls upon said cams. While the tracks 82 are in the warp beam supporting position shown in Fig. 3, the gudgeons 50 in the bearing mounts l1 and I8 are pulled out, so that the warp beam 16 is released for removal from these bearing mounts and the full weight of the warp beam rests on said tracks. In this raised position of the tracks 82, said tracks will form a continuous surface with the top surfaces of the respective brackets 10 and H,'so' that the warp beam can be rolled easily along said tracks and said brackets onto a truck. The top supporting surfaces of the tracks 82 are desirably curved upwardly in one direction in raised position thereof and the top surfaces of the brackets 10 and H slope slightly in the opposite direction, so that when the gudgeons 58 are pulled out, the released warp beam IE will not roll by itself off the tracks 82 or brackets 10 and H, but will be retained thereon until manually rolled off.

After the empty warp beam has been removed from the loom, the full warp beam can be rolled onto the brackets 18 and H and the tracks 82, and said tracks can be raised or lowered by manipulation'of the handles l6, until the warp beam is in axial alignment with its bearing mounts I! and I8. When the warp beam has been so aligned, the gudgeons 59 in the bearing mounts l1 and 48 are moved inwardly to effect the connection of said warp beam with said gudgeons, as already described.

While the invention has been described with particular reference to a specific embodiment, it is to be understood that it is not to be limited thereto but is to be construed broadly and restricted solely by the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a loom having a warp beam with a beam head at each end, and a bearing for each end of said warp beam, the combination comprising'a pair of fixed brackets, a pair of tracks pivotally secured to said brackets respectively and located below said beam heads respectively, each of said tracks and the corresponding bracket conjointly defining a substantially continuous supporting surface for the corresponding beam head, and means for moving said tracks about their pivotal supports towards and away from supporting position with respect to said beam heads and for moving thereby said warp beam in and out of axfially aligned position with respect to said bearmgs.

2. In a loom having a warp beam with a beam head at each end and a bearing for each end of said warp beam, the combination as described in claim 1, said track moving means comprising bearings in each of said brackets, a shaft supported in the bearings of each bracket, a handle for each shaft, and a lifting cam on each of said shafts engaging a corresponding track.

. 3. In a loom having loomsides, a warp beam located between said loomsides with a beam head at each end and a bearing for each end of said warp beam, the combination comprising a pair of brackets affixed to the inner sides of said loomsides respectively, a pair of tracks pivotally supported to said brackets respectively and located below said beam heads respectively, each of said tracks and the corresponding bracket conjointly defining a substantially continuous supporting 2,575,461 5 6 surface for a corresponding beam head, and REFERENCES CITED means Supported on Said brackets for moving said The following references are of record in the tracks about their pivotal supports towards and me of this patent: away from supporting position with respect to said beam heads and for moving thereby said 5 UNITED STATES PATENTS warp beam in and out of axially aligned position Number Name 7 Date with respect to said bearings. 1,559,434 Imbt Oct. 27, 1925 EDWARD A. KIESSLING. 2,190,849 Pierce Feb. 20, 1940 FRANCIS GERARD LAKE. 2,424,400 Kronofi July 22, 1947 FREDERIK STEPHENSEN. 10 2,447,227 Bergstrom Aug. 17, 1948 

